Kennedy Farms

What we do

Kennedy Farms is a small DIVERSE ECO-FARM specializing in honey, free-range eggs, and chemical free specialty produce.

How we do it

We maintain a diverse farm ecosystem with all parts working together to keep the farm health and flourishing. Our horses are fed hay from our pasture. The chickens love to peck through the leftovers. We use their rich manure to fertilize our fields. The chickens also help maintain the pasture saving us valuable time. We also grow hundreds of wildflowers in our bee yard, which not only provides our bees with pollen, but also supplies the farm with beautiful affordable flower bouquets. Having nearly a half a million bees on the property also has helped increase the farms yield without adding any extra nutrients to the soil!

All of our produce is grown without the use of chemical pesticides, herbicides or fertilizers, which helps to keep the environment and larger regional eco system healthy and teaming with wildlife. In addition to building diversity in our eco-system, Kennedy Farms also actively chooses to cultivate and preserve heirloom vegetable and fruit varieties, and heritage breed chickens. These little bits of American agricultural history are important to all of us, and we think that preserving genetic diversity in the food system is the key to a successful future for all of us.

In addition to preservation, Kennedy Farms also conserves resources. We do this in many ways, but the most profound being that we are SOLAR POWERED and OFF THE GRID. We use rainwater irrigation techniques as well, in addition to adding ECO-FARMING elements to the farm such as wildlife easements, terraced beds, and diversification. Future projects include adding further solar panels, wind power for those long dark winter months, and building a solar charging station for our egg refrigerator. And last but certainly not least we also reduce our waste by selling on our “ugly” veggies at a reduced price, and by feeding our lovely hens any left over vegetables, making for a better tastier egg and all around happier chickens!

Speaking of happier chickens, ours are the happiest ones I’ve ever met. They are kept in an open design chicken house full of perches and comfy nest boxes. They even have a protected run for 24 hour access to the outside. During the day our chickens roam free in their chicken yard that is fenced to keep them safe from the many predators that lurk about the farm. Sometimes species diversity can be a challenge so rather than eliminate predators we have chosen to protect our flock with fencing. The hens are free to move about their area indoors or out, peck for bugs and seeds, have relaxing dirt baths, or just do funny chicken stuff all day. At night we close the doors to their house, where they are snug and safe inside till the next morning. We currently have part of our flock on pasture, and plan to make improvements in the coming seasons to eventually allow for the entire flock to have a bit more space to roam. In addition to all their delicious bugs, seeds and veggies, we also feed our flock a NON GMO supplemental feed that contains oats, barley, wheat, organic soy and a mineral supplement to be sure they are getting all that they need to be happy and healthy, and make us tons of gorgeous large brown eggs.

Who we are

Stephanie Kennedy started Kennedy Farms in the Spring of 2016, after completing a full season apprenticeship with Sippel Family Farms in Mt. Gilead, OH. Her previous experience had included teaching farm to school curriculum in Central California public schools, helping to start a student run farm in Santa Cruz, CA, and several internships in urban agriculture. While California quickly became a second home, Stephanie actually grew up in Texas, where she was a part of a large tenant farming family. However, by the time she came along the family had long ago lost their farm, meaning Stephanie was the first generation of her family to NOT grow up farming.

After completing a masters degree in poverty and development at the University of Manchester, Stephanie travelled to Cameroon, where she helped out on a agricultural development project. It was during this time that all that her grandmother, Rosa Bell, had taught her over the years came flooding back to her, and that is when Kennedy Farms became her dream. And now, just a few years later, that dream has become the reality with a little help from her friends, some good old-fashioned hard work, and lots of luck.

Stephanie does most of the work on the farm, but she does get a bit of help from her roommate, friend, and assistant Mark Star. This season, Mark has helped with getting our beehives up and running. He has also been a huge help in taking care of our less productive farm inhabitants like Logan the Lazy Labrador, and Luna the Half- Blind Sporthorse. The chickens are a big fan of Mark as he always makes sure they have plenty of fresh water and food.